Irene Nielsen

After completing my degree in Dairy Science, I am considering attending graduate school to receive my master’s. My interest lies in dairy youngstock management and how the reproductive health of a cow can affect its offspring, so I plan to explore possibilities in graduate school within that area of study. Whether after my undergraduate program or after receiving a master’s, I want to work in the calf health and management industry, hopefully working directly with producers to assess how factors specific to their farm can affect the health of their calves and how to improve those. I am interested in evaluating how the effects of uncontrollable environmental factors can be managed in other ways by looking at areas such as housing, bedding, and ventilation and determining how genetics can predispose an animal to be hardier and withstand intense weather conditions in the Midwest. Through my interest in calf health and management, I aim to help farms improve their young stock management, an area often overlooked. As heifer-raising facilities become more popular for young stock raising, this area of the industry can be capitalized on to raise cows that are more productive, hardier, and live longer. Focusing on young stock management, especially during the pre-weaning stage, can be important to reproductive health, disease prevention, nutritional balance, and milk production. By improving early young stock management, animal welfare is prioritized, and each animal’s production life can be maximized. Improving animal welfare standards and raising the industry standards of youngstock care allows the industry to promote the importance of animal care to consumers. As consumers become increasingly aware and involved in dairy production, animal welfare will be highly considered when consuming dairy products.

Growing up, I did not have the support or access to work with dairy cattle closely, but I did have the opportunity to work with beef cattle, lambs, and horses. These experiences allowed me to expand my network and explore my educational and career interests, leading me to dairy cattle. In my personal life, I plan to work with local 4-H clubs to give kids the opportunity to get involved with owning, raising, and exhibiting dairy cattle in local and state shows. I have always enjoyed advocating for the industry and working alongside kids interested in dairy cattle. Through organizations like 4-H, state breed associations, and FFA, I hope to provide access to dairy cattle and the support to allow kids to go further within the dairy industry, working towards internships, scholarships, and awards that will help further their education.